Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SIGNAL ACQUISITION IN A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION
SYSTEM
BACKGROUND
I. Field
[00021 The present invention relates generally to communication, and
more
specifically to techniques for performing signal acquisition in a wireless
communication
system.
II. Background
[0003] In a communication system, a base station processes (e.g.,
encodes and
symbol maps) data to obtain modulation symbols, and further processes the
modulation
symbols to generate a modulated signal. The base station then transmits the
modulated
signal via a communication channel. The system may use a transmission scheme
whereby data is transmitted in frames, with each frame having a particular
time
duration. Different types of data (e.g., traffic/packet data, overhead/control
data, pilot,
and so on) may be sent in different parts of each frame.
[0004] A wireless terminal in the system may not know which base
stations, if any,
near its vicinity are transmitting. Furthermore, the terminal may not know the
start of
each frame for a given base station, the time at which each frame is
transmitted by the
base station, or the propagation delay introduced by the communication
channel. The
terminal performs signal acquisition to detect for transmissions from base
stations in the
system and to synchronize to the timing and frequency of each detected base
stations of
interest. Via the signal acquisition process, the terminal can ascertain the
timing of each
detected base station and can properly perform the complementary demodulation
for
that base station.
[00051 The base stations typically expend system resources to support
signal
acquisition, and the terminals also consume resources to perform acquisition.
Since
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signal acquisition is overhead needed for data transmission, it is desirable
to minimize
the amount of resources used by both the base stations and terminals for
acquisition.
[0006] There is therefore a need in the art for techniques to efficiently
perform
signal acquisition in a wireless communication system.
SUMMARY
[0007] Techniques to efficiently perform signal acquisition in a wireless
communication system are described herein. In an embodiment, each base station
transmits two time division multiplexed (TDM) pilots. The first TDM pilot (or
"TDM
pilot 1") is composed of multiple instances of a pilot-1 sequence that is
generated with a
first pseudo-random number (PN) sequence (or "PN1" sequence). Each instance of
the
pilot-1 sequence is a copy or replica of the pilot-1 sequence. The second TDM
pilot (or
"TDM pilot 2") is composed of at least one instance of a pilot-2 sequence that
is
generated with a second PN sequence (or "PN2" sequence). Each base station is
assigned a specific PN2 sequence that uniquely identifies that base station
among
neighboring base stations. To reduce computation for signal acquisition, the
available
PN2 sequences for the systern may be arranged into M1 sets. Each set contains
M2 PN2
sequences and is associated with a different PN1 sequence. Thus, M1 PN1
sequences
and M, = M2 PN2 sequences are available for the system.
[0008] A terminal may use TDM pilot 1 to detect for the presence of a
signal, obtain
timing, and estimate frequency error. The terminal may use TDM pilot 2 to
identify a
-
specific base station transmitting a TDM pilot 2. The use of two TDM pilots
for signal
detection and time synchronization can reduce the amount of processing needed
for
signal acquisition.
[0009] In an embodiment for signal detection, the terminal performs a
delayed
correlation on received samples in each sample period, computes a delayed
correlation
metric for the sample period, and compares this metric against a first
threshold to
determine whether a signal is present. If a signal is detected, then the
terminal obtains
coarse timing based on a peak in the delayed correlation. The terminal then
performs
direct correlation on the received samples with PN1 sequences for K1 different
time
offsets within an uncertainty window and identifies K2 strongest TDM pilot 1
instances,
where K, 1 and K2 1. If each PN1 sequence is associated with M2 PN sequences,
then each detected TDM pilot 1 instance is associated with M2 pilot-2
hypotheses. Each
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pilot-2 hypothesis corresponds to a specific time offset and a specific PN2
sequence for TDM
pilot 2.
[0010] In an embodiment for time synchronization, the terminal
performs direct
correlation on the received samples with PN2 sequences for the different pilot-
2 hypotheses to
detect for TDM pilot 2. The terminal only needs to evaluate M2 PN sequences
for each
detected TDM pilot 1 instance, instead of all M 1.M2 possible PN2 sequences.
The terminal
computes a direct correlation metric for each pilot-2 hypothesis and compares
this metric
against a second threshold to determine whether TDM pilot 2 is present. For
each detected
TDM pilot 2 instance, the base station transmitting the TDM pilot 2 is
identified based on the
PN2 sequence for the pilot-2 hypothesis, and the timing for the base station
is given by the
time offset for the hypothesis.
[001031 According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is
provided a
method of performing signal acquisition in a communication system, comprising:
performing
a first correlation based on received samples to detect a first time division
multiplexed (TDM)
pilot comprised of at least one instance of a first pilot sequence; when the
first TDM pilot is
detected, performing a second correlation based on the received samples to
detect a second
TDM pilot comprised of at least one instance of a second pilot sequence; and
identifying a
transmitter of the first and second TDM pilots based at least on a pseudo-
random number
(PN) sequence used for the second correlation to detect the second TDM pilot.
[00101)] According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is
provided
an apparatus for performing signal acquisition in a communication system,
comprising: a first
correlator operative to perform a first correlation based on received samples
to detect a first
time division multiplexed (TDM) pilot comprised of at least one instance of a
first pilot
sequence; a second correlator operative to, when the first TDM pilot is
detected, perform a
second correlation based on the received samples to detect a second TDM pilot
comprised of
at least one instance of a second pilot sequence; and a controller operative
to identify a
transmitter of the first and second TDM pilots based at least on a pseudo-
random number
(PN) sequence used for the second correlation to detect the second TDM pilot.
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10010c] According to still another embodiment of the present
invention, there is
provided an apparatus in a communication system, comprising: means for
performing a first
correlation based on received samples to detect a first time division
multiplexed (TDM) pilot
comprised of at least one instance of a first pilot sequence; means for, when
the first TDM
pilot is detected, performing a second correlation based on the received
samples to detect a
second TDM pilot comprised of at least one instance of a second pilot
sequence; and means
for identifying a transmitter of the first and second TDM pilots based at
least on a pseudo-
random number (PN) sequence used for the second correlation to detect the
second TDM
pilot.
[0010d1 According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, there
is
provided an apparatus for performing signal acquisition in a communication
system,
comprising: a first correlator operative to perform a first correlation based
on received
samples to detect a first time division multiplexed (TDM) pilot comprised of
at least one
instance of a first pilot sequence; and a second correlator operative to, when
the first TDM
pilot is detected, perform a second correlation based on the received samples
to detect a
second TDM pilot comprised of at least one instance of a second pilot
sequence, wherein the
second correlator is operative to perform direct correlation based on the
received samples with
at least one hypothesized pseudo-random number (PN) sequence for the second
TDM pilot.
[0010e] According to a further embodiment of the present invention,
there is provided
an apparatus in a communication system, comprising: means for performing a
first correlation
based on received samples to detect a first time division multiplexed (TDM)
pilot comprised
of at least one instance of a first pilot sequence; and means for, when the
first TDM pilot is
detected, performing a second correlation based on the received samples to
detect a second
TDM pilot comprised of at least one instance of a second pilot sequence,
wherein the means
for performing the second correlation comprises: means for performing direct
correlation
based on the received samples with at least one hypothesized pseudo-random
number (PN)
sequence for the second TDM pilot.
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[0010f] According to yet a further embodiment of the present
invention, there is
provided a machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon program
instructions
which, when executed by a computing device, cause any one of the methods above
to be
carried out.
[0010g] According to still a further embodiment of the present invention,
there is
provided a machine comprising: a processor; and a processor-readable medium in
communication with the processor, the medium storing instructions for
directing the processor
to cause any one of the methods above to be carried out.
100111 Various aspects and embodiments of the invention are described
in further
detail below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The features and nature of the present invention will become
more apparent
from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with
the drawings in
which like reference characters identify correspondingly throughout.
[0013] FIG. 1 shows a wireless communication system.
[0014] FIG. 2A shows TDM pilots 1 and 2 generated in the time domain.
[0015] FIG. 2B shows TDM pilots 1 and 2 generated in the frequency
domain.
[0016] FIG. 3A shows synchronous pilot transmission on the forward
link.
[0017] FIG. 3B shows staggered pilot transmission on the forward
link.
[0018] FIG. 3C shows asynchronous pilot transmission on the forward link.
[0019] FIG. 3D shows time-varying pilot transmission on the forward
link.
[0020] FIG. 4 shows a process performed by a terminal for signal
acquisition.
[0021] FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of a base station and a terminal.
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[0022] FIG. 6 shows a transmit (TX) pilot processor at the base station.
[0023] FIG. 7 shows a sync unit at the terminal.
[0024] FIG. 8A shows a delayed correlator for TDM pilot 1.
[0025] FIG. 8B shows a direct correlator for TDM pilot 1.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example,
instance, or illustration." Any embodiment or design described herein as
"exemplary"
is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other
embodiments
or designs.
100271 The signal acquisition techniques described herein may be used for
single-
carrier and multi-carrier communication systems. Furthermore, one or more TDM
pilots may be used to facilitate signal acquisition. For clarity, certain
aspects of the
techniques are described below for a specific TDM pilot transmission scheme in
a
multi-carrier system that utilizes orthogonal frequency division multiplexing
(OFDM).
OFDM is a multi-carrier modulation technique that effectively partitions the
overall
system bandwidth into multiple (NF) orthogonal frequency subbands. These
subbands
are also called tones, subcarriers, bins, and frequency channels. With OFDM,
each
subband is associated with a respective sub-carrier that may be modulated with
data.
[0028] FIG. 1 shows a wireless communication system 100. System 100
includes a
number of base stations 110 that support communication for a number of
wireless
terminals 120. A base station is a fixed station used for communicating with
the
terminals and may also be referred to as an access point, a Node B, or some
other
terminology. Terminals 120 are typically dispersed throughout the system, and
each
terminal may be fixed or mobile. A terminal may also be referred to as a
mobile station,
a user equipment (UE), a wireless communication device, or some other
terminology.
Each terminal may communicate with one or multiple base stations on the
forward and
reverse links at any given moment. The forward link (or downlink) refers to
the
communication link from the base stations to the terminals, and the reverse
link (or
uplink) refers to the communication link from the terminals to the base
stations. For
simplicity, FIG. 1 only shows forward link transmissions.
[0029] Each base station 110 provides communication coverage for a
respective
geographic area. The term "cell" can refer to a base station and/or its
coverage area,
depending on the context in which the term is used. To increase capacity, the
coverage
area of each base station may be partitioned into multiple regions (e.g.,
three regions).
Each region may be served by a corresponding base transceiver subsystem (BTS).
The
term "sector" can refer to a BTS and/or its coverage area, depending on the
context in
which the term is used. For a sectorized cell, the base station for that cell
typically
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includes the BTSs for all of the sectors of that cell. For simplicity, in the
following
description, the term "base station" is used generically for both a fixed
station that
serves a cell and a fixed station that serves a sector. Thus, a "base station"
in the
following description may be for a cell or a sector, depending on whether the
system has
unsectorized or sectorized cells, respectively.
[0030] FIG. 2A shows an exemplary pilot and data transmission scheme for
the
forward link in system 100. Each base station transmits data and pilot in
frames, with
each frame 210 having a predetermined time duration. A frame may also be
referred to
as a slot or some other terminology. In an embodiment, each frame 210 includes
a field
220 for TDM pilots and a field 230 for data. In general, a frame may include
any
number of fields for any type of transmission. A transmission interval refers
to a time
interval in which the TDM pilots are transmitted once. In general, a
transmission
interval may be a fixed time duration (e.g., a frame) or a variable time
duration.
[0031] For the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, field 220 includes a subfield
222 for
TDM pilot 1 and a subfield 224 for TDM pilot 2. TDM pilot 1 has a total length
of T1
samples and comprises S1 identical pilot-1 sequences, where in general S, 1.
TDM
pilot 2 has a total length of T2 samples and comprises S2 identical pilot-2
sequences,
where in general S2 1. Thus, there may be one or multiple pilot-1 sequence
instances
for TDM pilot 1 and one or multiple pilot-2 sequence instances for.TDM pilot
2. TDM
pilots 1 and 2 may be generated in the time domain or the frequency domain
(e.g., with
OFDM).
[0032] FIG. 2A also shows an embodiment of TDM pilots 1 and 2 generated in
the
time domain. For this embodiment, each pilot-1 sequence is generated with a
PN1
sequence having L1 PN chips, where L, >1. Each PN chip may take on a value of
either +1 or ¨1 and is transmitted in one sample/chip period. TDM pilot 1
comprises Si
complete pilot-1 sequences and, if SI = L, <T1, a partial pilot-1 sequence of
length Ci,
where C, =T1 ¨S1 S, = L1. The total length of TDM pilot 1 is thus T, = S, = L,
+ C, . For
the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, TDM pilot 2 comprises one complete pilot-2
sequence generated with a PN2 sequence of length T2. In general, TDM pilot 2
may
comprise S2 complete pilot-2 sequences generated with a PN2 sequence of length
1,2
and, if S2 = L2 <1'2, a partial pilot-2 sequence of length C2, where C2 = T2 ¨
S2 = L2. The
total length of TDM pilot 2 is then T2 = S2 = L2 + C2.
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[0033] As used herein, a PN sequence may be any sequence of chips that may
be
generated in any manner and preferably has good correlation properties. For
example, a
PN sequence may be generated with a generator polynomial, as is known in the
art. The
PN sequence for each base station (e.g., each sector) may also be a scrambling
code
used to randomize data. In this case, the TDM pilots may be generated by
applying the
scrambling code to a sequence of all ones or all zeros.
[0034] FIG. 2B shows an embodiment of TDM pilots 1 and 2 generated in the
frequency domain using OFDM. For this embodiment, TDM pilot 1 comprises L1
pilot
symbols that are transmitted on L1 subbands, one pilot symbol per subband used
for
TDM pilot 1. The L1 subbands are uniformly distributed across the NF total
subbands
and are equally spaced apart by S1 subbands, where SI = NF / LI and SI 1. For
example, if NF = 512, L, = 256, and S, = 2, then 256 pilot symbols are
transmitted on
256 subbands that are spaced apart by two subbands. Other values may also be
used for
NF, LI, and SI. The L1 pilot symbols for the L1 subbands and NF 1,1 zero
signal
values for the remaining subbands are transformed to the time domain with an
NF-point
inverse discrete Fourier transform (IDFT) to generate a "transformed" symbol
that
contains NF time-domain samples. This transformed symbol has S1 identical
pilot-1
sequences, with each pilot-1 sequence containing L1 time-domain samples. A
pilot-1
sequence may also be generated by performing an Li-point lDFT on the L1 pilot
symbols for TDM pilot 1. For OFDM, C rightmost samples of the transformed
symbol
are often copied and appended in front of the transformed symbol to generate
an OFDM
symbol that contains NF C samples. The repeated portion is often called a
cyclic
prefix and is used to combat inter-symbol interference (ISI). For example, if
NF = 512
and C = 32 , then each OFDM symbol contains 544 samples. Other OFDM subband
structures with different numbers of total subbands and cyclic prefix lengths
may also
be used.
[0035] The PN1 sequence may be applied in the frequency domain by
multiplying
the L1 pilot symbols with the L1 chips of the PN1 sequence. The PN1 sequence
may
also be applied in the time domain by multiplying the L1 time-domain samples
for each
pilot-1 sequence with the L1 chips of the PN1 sequence.
[0036] TDM pilot 2 may be generated in the frequency domain in similar
manner as
described above for TDM pilot 1. For TDM pilot 2, L2 pilot symbols are
transmitted on
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L2 subbands that are evenly spaced apart by S2 subbands, where S2 = N L2 and
S2 ?- 1.
The PN2 sequence may be applied in the time or frequency domain. If TDM pilots
1
and 2 are generated in the frequency domain, then the pilot-1 and pilot-2
sequences
contain complex values instead of 1. For the embodiment shown in FIG. 2B, TDM
pilots 1 and 2 are each sent within one OFDM symbol. In general, each TDM
pilot may
include any number of OFDM symbols.
[0037] Neighboring base stations may use the same or different PN1
sequences for
TDM pilot 1. A set of M1 PN1 sequences may be formed, and each base station
may
use one of the M1 PN1 sequences in this set. To reduce complexity, M1 may be
chosen
to be a small positive number. In an embodiment, neighboring base stations use
different PN2 sequences for TDM pilot 2, and the PN2 sequence for each base
station is
used to uniquely identify that base station among neighboring base stations.
[0038] To reduce computation for signal acquisition, each PN1 sequence may
be
associated with a different set of M2 PN2 sequences. A composite set of MI =
M2
different PN2 sequences is then available. Each base station may be assigned
one of the
PN2 sequences in the composite set as well as the PN1 sequence associated with
the
PN2 sequence assigned to the base station. Each base station thus uses a pair
of PN1
and PN2 sequences that is different from the PN1 and PN2 sequence pairs used
by
neighboring base stations. M1 and M2 may be selected to be reasonably small
values to
reduce complexity but sufficiently large to ensure that no terminal will
observe two base
stations with the same PN2 sequence (e.g., M1 = M2 = 256).
[0039] A terminal may use TDM pilot 1 to detect for the presence of a
signal, obtain
coarse timing, and estimate frequency error. The terminal may use TDM pilot 2
to
identify a specific base station transmitting a TDM pilot 2 and to obtain more
accurate
timing (or time synchronization). The use of two separate TDM pilots for
signal
detection and time synchronization can reduce the amount of processing needed
for
signal acquisition, as described below. The duration or length of each TDM
pilot may
be selected based on a tradeoff between detection performance and the amount
of
overhead incurred for that TDM pilot. In an embodiment, TDM pilot 1 comprises
two
complete pilot-1 sequences each having a length of 256 chips (or Si = 2 and LI
= 256),
and TDM pilot 2 comprises one complete pilot-2 sequence having a length of 512
or
544 chips (or S2 = 1, and L2 = 544 for FIG. 2A and L2 = 512 for FIG. 2B). In
general,
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TDM pilot 1 may comprise any number of pilot-1 sequences, which may be of any
length, and TDM pilot 2 may also comprise any number of pilot-2 sequences,
which
may also be of any length.
[0040] FIG. 3A shows a synchronous pilot transmission scheme for the
forward
link. For this scheme, the base stations in the system are synchronous and
transmit their
TDM pilots at approximately the same time. A terminal can receive the TDM
pilots
from all base stations at approximately the same time, with any timing skew
between
the base stations being due to differences in propagation delays and possibly
other
factors. By synchronizing the TDM pilots from different base stations,
interference by
the TDM pilots from one base station on data transmissions by other base
stations is
avoided, which may improve data detection performance. Furthermore,
interference
from the data transmissions on the TDM pilots is also avoided, which may
improve
acquisition performance.
[0041] FIG. 3B shows a staggered pilot transmission scheme for the forward
link.
For this scheme, the base stations in the system are synchronous but transmit
their TDM
pilots at different times so that the TDM pilots are staggered. The base
stations may be
identified by the time at which they transmit their TDM pilots. The same PN
sequence
may be used for all base stations, and the processing for signal acquisition
may be
reduced dramatically with all base stations using the same PN sequence. For
this
scheme, the pilot transmission from each base station observes interference
from the
data transmissions from neighboring base stations.
[0042] FIG. 3C shows an asynchronous pilot transmission scheme for the
forward
link. For this scheme, the base stations in the system are asynchronous and
each base
station transmits its TDM pilots based on its timing. The TDM pilots from
different
base stations may thus arrive at different times at the terminal.
[0043] For the synchronous pilot transmission scheme shown in FIG. 3A, the
TDM
pilot transmission from each base station may observe the same interference
from the
TDM pilot transmissions from neighboring base stations in each frame. In this
case,
averaging the TDM pilots over multiple frames does not provide averaging gain
since
the same interference is present in each frame. The interference may be varied
by
changing the TDM pilots across frames.
[0044] FIG. 3D shows a time-varying pilot transmission scheme for the
forward
link. For this scheme, each base station is assigned a set of MB PN1 sequences
for
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TDM pilot 1, where MB > 1. Each base station uses one PN1 sequence for TDM
pilot 1
for each frame and cycles through the MB PN1 sequences in MB frames. Different
base
stations are assigned different sets of MB PN1 sequences.
[0045] The set of MB PN1 sequences for each base station may be viewed as a
"long
code" that spans across multiple frames. Each of the MB PN1 sequences may be
considered as a segment of the long code and may be generated with a different
seed for
the long code. To reduce receiver processing complexity, the same long code
may be
used for all base stations, and each base station may be assigned a different
offset of the
long code. For example, base station i may be assigned a long code offset of
Ici, where
ki is within a range of 0 through MB -1. The PN1 sequences for base station i,
starting
at a designated frame, is then given as: PNlki , PNlki+1, PNlki+2 , and so on.
Detection
of a given PN1 sequence or long code offset, along with the frame in which the
PN1
sequence is detected relative to the designated frame, can identify which set
of PN1
sequences the detected PN1 sequence belongs.
[0046] In general, improved acquisition performance may be achieved if all
base
stations in the system are synchronized and transmit their TDM pilots at the
same time.
However, this is not a necessary condition, and all or a subset of the base
stations in the
system may be asynchronous. For clarity, much of the following description
assumes
that the base stations are synchronous.
[0047] FIGS. 2A and 2B show the use of two TDM pilots, or TDM pilots 1 and
2.
In general, any number of TDM pilots may be used to facilitate signal
acquisition by the
terminals. Each TDM pilot may be associated with a different set of PN
sequences. A
hierarchical structure may be used for the PN sequences. For example, TDM
pilot 1
may be associated with M1 possible PN1 sequences (or M1 possible sets of PN1
sequences), each PN1 sequence may be associated with M2 possible PN2
sequences,
each PN2 sequence may be associated with M3 possible PN3 sequences, and so on.
Each PN1 sequence may be assigned to a large number of base stations in the
system,
each PN2 sequence may be assigned to a smaller number of base stations, and so
on. In
general, each TDM pilot may be generated with a PN sequence or without a PN
sequence. For simplicity, the following description assumes the use of two TDM
pilots
generated with two PN sequences selected from two different sets of PN
sequences.
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[0048] The
terminal performs different processing for signal detection and time
synchronization. The use of different PN sequences for TDM pilots 1 and 2
allows the
terminal to split up the processing for these two tasks, as described below.
1. Delayed Correlation for TDM pilot 1'
[0049] At a terminal, the received sample for each sample period may be
expressed as:
r(n)=h(n)s(n)+w(n)_¨y(n)+w(n) , Eq (1)
where n is an index for sample period;
s(n) is a time-domain sample sent by a base station in sample period n;
h(n) is a complex channel gain observed by sample s(n);
r(n) is a received sample obtained by the terminal for sample period n;
w(n) is the noise for sample period n;
y(n)=h(n) s(n); and
0 denotes a convolution operation.
[0050] TDM
pilot 1 is a periodic signal composed of S1 instances of the pilot-1
sequence. The terminal may perform delayed correlation to detect for the
presence of
an underlying periodic signal (e.g., TDM pilot 1) in the received signal. The
delayed
correlation may be expressed as:
C(n)= L r* (n ¨ i) = r(n ¨ i ¨Li) , Eq (2)
i=o
where C(n) is a delayed correlation result for sample period n;
N1 is the length or duration of the delayed correlation; and
" * "denotes a complex conjugate.
The delayed correlation length (N1) may be set to the total length of TDM
pilot 1 (Ti)
minus the length of one pilot-1 sequence (Li) and minus a margin (Q1) to
account for
ISI effects at the edges of TDM pilot 1, or N1 = T1 ¨ L1 ¨ Q . For the
embodiment
shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B with TDM pilot 1 comprising two pilot-1 sequences,
the
delayed correlation length N1 may be set to pilot-1 sequence length, or N1 =
L1.
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[0051]
Equation (2) computes a correlation between two received samples r(n ¨ i)
and r(n¨i¨L1) that are spaced apart by L1 sample periods, which is the pilot-1
sequence length. This correlation, which is c(n ¨ i) = r* (n ¨ i) = r(n ¨ i ¨
L1) , removes
the effect of the communication channel without requiring a channel gain
estimate. N1
correlations are computed for N1 different pairs of received samples. Equation
(2) then
accumulates the N1 correlation results c(n) through c(n ¨N1 + 1) to obtain the
delayed
correlation result C(n) , which is a complex value.
[0052] A
delayed correlation metric may be defined as the squared magnitude of the
delayed correlation result, as follows:
S(n) =1 C(n)12 , Eq (3)
where I x 12 denotes the squared magnitude of x.
[0053] The
terminal may declare the presence of TDM pilot 1 if the following
condition is true:
S(n) > I En, 12 , Eq (4)
where Erx is the energy of the received samples and 2 is a threshold value.
The energy
En, may be computed based on the received samples used for the delayed
correlation
and is indicative of the temporally local energy. Equation (4) performs a
normalized
comparison, where the normalization is based on the energy of the received
samples for
TDM pilot 1, if it is present. The threshold value A may be selected to trade
off between
detection probability and false alarm probability for TDM pilot 1. Detection
probability
is the probability of correctly indicating the presence of TDM pilot 1 when it
is present.
False alarm probability is the probability of incorrectly indicating the
presence of TDM
pilot 1 when it is not present. High detection probability and low false alarm
probability
are desirable. In general, a higher threshold value reduces both detection
probability
and false alarm probability.
[0054]
Equation (4) shows the use of an energy-based threshold to detect for TDM
pilot 1. Other thresholding schemes may also be used for TDM pilot detection.
For
example, if an automatic gain control (AGC) mechanism automatically normalizes
the
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energy of the received samples, then an absolute threshold may be used for TDM
pilot
detection.
[0055] If the
terminal is equipped with multiple (R) antennas, then the delayed
correlation result C( n) may be computed for each antenna j as shown in
equation (2).
The delayed correlation results for all antennas may be coherently combined as
follows:
Ctotai(n) = Cj (n) . Eq (5)
The squared magnitude of the combined delayed correlation result, or I C total
(n)12 may
be compared against a normalized threshold 2 = E E ,2. , where Ei is the
received energy
j=1
for antenna j.
[0056] The
terminal computes an Ni-point delayed correlation C(n) for each
sample period n based on the received sample sequence {r(n ¨ 0} and the
delayed
received sample sequence {r(n ¨ i ¨ LI )} , as shown in equation (2). If SI =
2, then the
magnitude of the delayed correlation has a triangular shape when plotted
against sample
period n. The delayed correlation result has a peak value at sample period np.
This
peak occurs when the delayed correlation spans the duration of the two pilot-1
sequences. If the delayed correlation is performed as described above and in
the
absence of noise, then sample period np is "close to" the end of the second
pilot-1
sequence for TDM pilot 1. The imprecision in the peak location is due to ISI
effects at
the edges of TDM pilot 1. The magnitude of the delayed correlation result
falls off
gradually on both sides of sample period np, since the signal is periodic over
only a
portion of the delayed correlation duration for all other sample periods.
[0057] The
terminal declares the presence of TDM pilot 1 if the delayed correlation
metric S(n) crosses the predetermined threshold in any sample period, as shown
in
equation (4). This sample period occurs on the left or leading edge of the
triangular
shape. The terminal continues to perform the delayed correlation (e.g., for
the next L1
sample periods) in order to detect for the peak in the delayed correlation
result. If TDM
pilot 1 has been detected, then the location of the delayed correlation peak
is used as a
coarse time estimate. This time estimate may not be very accurate because (1)
the
delayed correlation result has a gradual peak and the location of the peak may
be
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inaccurate in the presence of noise and (2) ISI at the edges of the TDM pilot
1 causes
degradation in the delayed correlation result.
[0058] In an
alternative embodiment, the delayed correlation is performed across an
entire frame to obtain a delayed correlation metric for each sample period in
the frame.
The largest delayed correlation metric in the frame is then provided as the
location of
the detected TDM pilot 1 and the coarse time estimate. This embodiment
performs
TDM pilot 1 detection without the use of a threshold and may also reduce false
peak
detection due to interference from, e.g., a frequency division multiplexed
(FDM) pilot
that is transmitted continuously across the data portion of each frame by
neighboring
base stations and/or the base station being detected. Other schemes (which may
employ
more sophisticated detection logic) may also be used to detect for the
presence of TDM
pilot 1 and to determine the location of the delayed correlation peak.
[0059] The
delayed correlation is essentially used to detect for the presence of an
underlying periodic signal. The delayed correlation is thus immune to
multipath
degradations but still captures multipath diversity. This is because a
periodic signal
remains periodic in the presence of multipath. Furthermore, if multiple base
stations
transmit periodic signals simultaneously, then the composite signal at the
terminal is
also periodic. For synchronous pilot transmission as shown in FIG. 3A, TDM
pilot 1
essentially observes no interference (for the purpose of delayed correlation)
and is
affected mainly by thermal noise. As a result, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)
or carrier-
to-interference ratio (C/I) for TDM pilot 1 may be higher than the SNR for
other
transmissions. The higher SNR for TDM pilot 1 allows the terminal to achieve
good
detection performance with a shorter TDM pilot 1 duration, which reduces
overhead.
[0060] The
terminal may obtain a coarse frequency error estimate based on the
delayed correlation result C(n). If the frequency of a radio frequency (RF)
oscillator
used for frequency downconversion at the terminal is offset from the center
frequency
of the received signal, then the received samples have a phase ramp in the
time domain
and may be expressed as:
r(n) = y(n) = ej2g.Af =T`'n w(n) , Eq (6)
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where Af is the frequency offset/error and T, is one chip period. Equation (6)
differs
from equation (1) by the phase ramp efl'All".n caused by frequency error if in
the RF
oscillator at the terminal.
[0061] If the
expression for the received samples in equation (6) is used for the
delayed correlation in equation (2), then the phase of the delayed correlation
result
(assuming no noise) may be expressed as:
27r = Af = L, = Tc = arg {C(n)} , Eq (7)
where arg {x} is the argument of x, which is the arctangent of the imaginary
part of x
over the real part of x. The frequency error Af may be obtained by dividing
the phase
of the delayed correlation result by 27r = Li = , as follows:
Af = arg {C(n)}
Eq (8)
221- = Li = Tc
[0062] The
frequency error estimate in equation (8) is valid if the phase of the
delayed correlation result is within a range of to r,
or 27r = Af = L, = I', Ã (-7r, ,r). A
frequency error that is too large cannot be detected by the delayed
correlation. Thus,
the frequency error should be maintained less than a maximum allowable range.
For
example, I Af I should be less than 9.75 KHz or 4.65 parts per million (ppm)
if the
center frequency is 2.1 GHz. For a conservative design, the frequency error
may be
constrained to an even smaller range, e.g., IAf I< 2.5 ppm. A larger frequency
error
may be tolerated and detected by reducing the length of pilot-1 sequence.
However, a
shorter pilot-1 sequence also degrades signal detection performance.
[0063] The
frequency error Af may be corrected in various manners. For example,
the frequency of the RF oscillator at the terminal may be adjusted via a phase-
locked
loop (PLL) to correct for the frequency error. As another example, the
received samples
may be digitally rotated as follows:
¨ j2fc=ArTen
?An) = r(n) = e Eq (9)
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where ri(n) is a frequency-corrected sample. The terminal may also perform
resampling of the frequency-corrected samples to account for frequency error
of the
clock used for sampling, which may be generated from the same RF oscillator.
2. Direct Correlation for TDM Pilot 1
[0064] The peak of the delayed correlation gives an approximate location of
TDM
pilot 1. The actual location of TDM pilot 1 falls within an uncertainty window
(denoted
as Wu) that is centered at the location np of the delayed correlation peak.
Computer
simulations for an exemplary system indicate that there is a high likelihood
of TDM
pilot 1 falling within 35 sample periods of the peak location np when a
single base
station is transmitting. When multiple base stations are transmitting in a
synchronous
system, the uncertainty window depends on the lag or delay between the arrival
times of
the signals transmitted by these base stations. This lag is dependent on the
distance
between the base stations. As an example, a distance of 5 kilo meter (km)
corresponds
to a lag of approximately 80 sample periods, and the uncertainty window is
about 80
sample periods. In general, the uncertainty window is dependent on various
factors
such as the system bandwidth, the TDM pilot 1 duration, the received SNR for
TDM
pilot 1, the number of base stations transmitting TDM pilot 1, the time delay
for
different base stations, and so on.
[0065] The terminal may perform direct correlation to detect for strong
instances of
TDM pilot 1 within the uncertainty window. For each time offset within the
uncertainty
window, the terminal may perform direct correlation for each of the M1
possible PN1
sequences that may be used for TDM pilot 1. Alternatively, the terminal may
perform
direct correlation for each PN1 sequence used by a base station in a candidate
set for the
terminal. This candidate set may contain base stations (e.g., sectors)
identified by the
base stations with which the terminal is in communication, base stations that
the
terminal has identified itself via a low-rate search, and so on. In any case,
each pilot-1
hypothesis corresponds to (1) a specific time offset where TDM pilot 1 from a
base
station may be present and (2) a specific PN1 sequence that may have been used
for the
TDM pilot 1.
[0066] The direct correlation for TDM pilot 1 for pilot-1 hypothesis (n,m)
, with
time offset of n and PN1 sequence of pm(i), may be expressed as:
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N ¨I
m
Dm(n) ¨ ir* (i " p' (i) Eq
(10)
where n is the time offset for pilot-1 hypothesis (n,rn) , which falls within
the
uncertainty window, or n E Wu ;
põ,' (i) is the i-th chip in an extended PN1 sequence for pilot-1 hypothesis
(n,m);
D,,,(n) is a direct correlation result for pilot-1 hypothesis (n, m); and
Nid is the length of the direct correlation for TDM pilot 1 (e.g., Nid = S1 =
L1).
The extended PN1 sequence pm (i) is obtained by repeating the PN1 sequence
põ,(i)
for pilot-1 hypothesis (n, m) as many times as needed to obtain Nid PN chips.
For
example, if the direct correlation is performed over two pilot-1 instances, or
Nid = 2 = L1, then the PN1 sequence p,,,(i) of length L1 is repeated twice to
obtain the
extended PN1 sequence pm' (i) of length 24
[0067] For each PN1 sequence to be evaluated, the terminal may perform
direct
correlation at every half chip within the uncertainty window in order to
reduce
degradation due to sample timing error at the terminal. For example, if the
uncertainty
window is 80 chips, then the terminal may perform 320 direct correlations for
each
PN1 sequence, which corresponds to an uncertainty of 80 sample periods in each
direction from the uncertainty window center at sample period np. If all M1
PN1
sequences are evaluated, then the total number of direct correlations for TDM
pilot 1 is
320 = M,. In general, the terminal performs K1 direct correlations for K1
different time
offsets for each PN1 sequence to be evaluated, or K, = MI direct correlations
if all M1
PN1 sequences are evaluated.
[0068] The direct correlation is used to identify strong instances of TDM
pilot 1 in
the received signal. After performing all of the direct correlations for TDM
pilot 1, the
terminal selects K2 strongest TDM pilot 1 instances having the largest direct
correlation
results. Each detected TDM pilot 1 instance is associated with a specific time
offset and
a specific PN1 sequence, e.g., the k-th detected TDM pilot 1 instance is
associated with
time offset nk and PN1 sequence pk(i) . The terminal may also compare the
direct
correlation metric for each detected TDM pilot 1 instance against a normalized
threshold and discard the instance if its metric is below the threshold. In
any case, 1(2
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may be a small value for initial acquisition when the terminal is attempting
to detect for
the strongest base station. For handoff between base stations, K2 may be a
larger value
to allow for detection of signal paths belonging to the strongest base station
as well as
weaker base stations. Computer simulations indicate that K2 =4 may be
sufficient for
initial acquisition and K2 = 16 may be sufficient to detect for multiple base
stations for
hando ff.
[0069] The direction correlation may also be performed in the frequency
domain.
For frequency domain direct correlation, an NF-point discrete Fourier
transform (DFT)
is performed on NF received samples for a given time offset n to obtain NF
frequency-
domain values for the NF total subbands. The frequency-domain values for
subbands
without pilot symbols are set to zero. The resultant NF frequency-domain
values are
then multiplied with NF pilot symbols that include the PN1 sequence for a
pilot-1
hypothesis being evaluated. The NF resultant symbols may be accumulated to
obtain a
direct correlation result for the pilot-1 hypothesis at time offset n.
Alternatively, an NF-
point IDFT may be performed on the NF resultant symbols to obtain NF time-
domain
values, which corresponds to different time offsets. In any case, the
correlation results
may be post-processed as described above to identify the K2 strongest TDM
pilot 1
instances.
3. Direct Correlation for TDM Pilot 2
[0070] The terminal evaluates the K2 detected TDM pilot 1 instances by
performing
direct correlation on the received samples for TDM pilot 2 with PN2 sequences.
For
each detected TDM pilot 1 instance, the terminal determines the set of M2 PN2
sequences {st,k (i)} associated with the PN1 sequence pk(i) used for that
detected TDM
pilot 1 instance. Each detected TDM pilot 1 instance may thus be associated
with M2
pilot-2 hypotheses. Each pilot-2 hypothesis corresponds to (1) a specific time
offset
where TDM pilot 2 from a base station may be present and (2) a specific PN2
sequence
that may have been used for the TDM pilot 2. For each pilot-2 hypothesis, the
terminal
performs direct correlation on the received samples for TDM pilot 2 with the
PN2
sequence for that hypothesis to detect for the presence of TDM pilot 2.
[0071] The direct correlation for TDM pilot 2 for pilot-2 hypothesis (k, ,
with
time offset of nk and PN2 sequence of st,k(i), may be expressed as:
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N--1
G e(n k) ¨_2_ (i nk= ) s (i)
,k Eq
(11)
i=0
where st,k (i) is the i-th chip in the PN2 sequence for pilot-2 hypothesis (k,
;
r(i ¨ n k) is the i-th received sample for time offset n k;
G e (n k) is a direct correlation result for pilot-2 hypothesis (k, ; and
N2 is the length of the direct correlation for TDM pilot 2.
The direct correlation length may be set to the length of the pilot-2 sequence
(i.e.,
N2 = L2) or the length of TDM pilot 2 (i.e., N2 = T2) if T2 # L2.
[0072] A direct correlation metric for TDM pilot 2 may be defined as the
squared
magnitude of the direct correlation result, as follows:
H e(n k) = 1 G e(n k) 12 . Eq
(12)
The terminal may declare the presence of TDM pilot 2 if the following
condition is true:
H e(n k) > p = En, , Eq
(13)
where Erx is the energy of the received samples and ,u is a threshold value
for TDM
pilot 2. The energy En, may be computed based on the received samples used for
the
direct correlation for TDM pilot 2 and is indicative of the local energy. The
threshold
value p may be selected to trade off between detection probability and false
alarm
probability for TDM pilot 2.
[0073] If the terminal is equipped with multiple (R) antennas, then the
direct
correlation G (n k) may be computed for each antenna j for a given hypothesis
(k, ,
as shown in equation (11). The direct correlation results for all R antennas
may be non-
coherently combined as follows:
II war ,t(n k) = E Gej(n k)12 = Eq
(14)
j=1
Equation (14) assumes that the path delay at all R antennas is the same, but
the
magnitudes of the channel gains for the R antennas are independent. The
composite
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direct correlation metric iitomi,t(nk ) may be compared against a normalized
threshold
p= Erxiotai , where Erx_total is the total energy for all R antennas.
[0074] The A and p thresholds are used for detection of TDM pilots 1 and 2,
respectively. These thresholds determine the detection probability as well as
the false
alarm probability. Low A and p thresholds increase the detection probability
but also
increase false alarm probability, and the converse is true for high A and p
thresholds.
For a given threshold, the detection probability and false alarm probability
generally
increase with increasing SNR. The A and p thresholds may be appropriately
selected
such that (1) the detection rates for the delayed correlation and direct
correlation,
respectively, are sufficiently high even at low SNRs, and (2) the false alarm
rates for the
delayed correlation and direct correlation, respectively, are sufficiently low
even at high
SNRs.
[0075] A detection probability of Pdet corresponds to a misdetection
probability of
(1¨ Pdet) = A misdetection is not detecting a pilot that is present. A
misdetection of
TDM pilot 1 has the effect of extending acquisition time, until the next
transmission of
TDM pilot 1 is received. If TDM pilot 1 is transmitted periodically (e.g.,
every 20
milliseconds), then a misdetection of TDM pilot 1 is not problematic.
[0076] A false alarm for the delayed correlation for TDM pilot 1 is not
catastrophic
since the subsequent direct correlation for TDM pilot 2 will most likely catch
this false
alarm as a bad hypothesis, i.e., this hypothesis will most likely fail the
normalized
comparison in equation (13). An adverse effect of a delayed correlation false
alarm is
extra computation for the direct correlations for both TDM pilots 1 and 2. The
number
of delayed correlation false alarms should be kept small, e.g., to a given
target delayed
correlation false alarm probability for any one frame. A false alarm for the
direct
correlation for TDM pilot 2 results in an increased false alarm probability
for the overall
system. The false alarm rate for TDM pilot 2 may be reduced by performing
direct
correlation with only PN2 sequences used by the base station(s) in the
candidate set. A
large frequency error that exceeds a maximum allowable range is not corrected
nor
detected by the direct correlations for TDM pilots 1 and pilot 2, and hence
has the same
effect as a false alarm.
[0077] A mechanism may be used to recover from a false alarm event in the
direct
correlation for TDM pilot 2. If the direct correlation for TDM pilot 2
declares
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detection, then the terminal should be able to demodulate the data and control
channels
sent by the base station after the frequency and/or time tracking loops have
converged.
The terminal may check for a false alarm by attempting to decode a control
channel.
For example, each base station in the system may broadcast a control channel
on the
forward link to send assignment and acknowledgment to terminals within its
coverage
area. This control channel may be required to have a high (e.g., 99%)
detection
probability for satisfactory system operation and may utilize a strong error
detection
code, e.g., a 16 bit cyclic redundancy check (CRC), which corresponds to a
false alarm
probability of 0.516 1.5 x10-5. When the direct correlation for TDM pilot 2
declares
detection, the terminal may attempt to decode one or more packets or messages
sent on
this control channel. If the decoding fails, then the terminal may declare a
false alarm
and restart the acquisition process.
[0078] FIG. 4 shows a flow diagram of an acquisition process 400 performed
by the
terminal. The terminal performs delayed correlation on the received samples to
detect
for the presence of TDM pilot 1 (block 410). This may be achieved by
performing
delayed correlation for each sample period and comparing the delayed
correlation
metric S(n) against the normalized threshold. If TDM pilot 1 is not detected,
as
determined in block 412, then the terminal returns to block 410 to perform
delayed
correlation in the next sample period. However, if TDM pilot 1 is detected,
then the
terminal estimates the frequency error in the received sample and corrects for
the
frequency error (block 414).
[0079] The terminal then performs direct correlation on either the received
samples
or the frequency-corrected samples with PN1 sequences for K1 different time
offsets
and identifies 1(2 best detected TDM pilot 1 instances having K2 largest
direct
correlation results for TDM pilot 1 (block 416). Each detected TDM pilot 1
instance is
associated with a specific time offset and a specific PN1 sequence. The
terminal may
evaluate M2 pilot-2 hypotheses for each detected TDM pilot 1 instance, with
each pilot-
2 hypothesis being associated with a specific time offset and a specific PN2
sequence.
For each pilot-2 hypothesis, the terminal performs direct correlation on the
received or
frequency-corrected samples with the PN2 sequence for the hypothesis and
compares
the direct correlation metric Ile(nk) against the normalized threshold to
detect for the
presence of TDM pilot 2 (block 418).
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[0080] If TDM pilot 2 is not detected, as determined in block 420, then the
terminal
returns to block 410. Otherwise, the terminal may attempt to decode a control
channel
to check for false alarm (block 422). If the control channel is successfully
decoded, as
determined in block 424, then the terminal declares successful acquisition
(block 426).
Otherwise, the terminal returns to block 410.
[0081] The acquisition process may be performed in stages, as shown in FIG.
4.
Stage 1 covers the delayed and direct correlations for TDM pilot 1 and is
generally used
for signal detection. Stage 1 includes substage 1 for the delayed correlation
for TDM
pilot 1 and substage 2 for the direct correlation for TDM pilot 1. Stage 2
covers the
direct correlation for TDM pilot 2 and is used for time synchronization and
base station
identification. Stage 3 covers the decoding of a control channel and is used
to check for
false alarm. Signal acquisition may also be performed with fewer than all of
the stages
and substages shown in FIG. 4. For example, stage 3 may be omitted, substage 2
may
be omitted, and so on.
[0082] The terminal performs initial acquisition (e.g., upon power up) if
it is not
already receiving a signal from a base station. The terminal typically does
not have
accurate system timing for initial acquisition and may thus perform direct
correlation for
TDM pilot 1 over a larger uncertainty window in order to ensure detection of
TDM pilot
1. For initial acquisition, the terminal may only need to search for the
strongest base
station, and may thus select a smaller number of detected TDM pilot 1
instances for
subsequent evaluation.
[0083] The terminal may perform handoff acquisition to search for better
(e.g.,
stronger) base stations to receive service from. For the staggered pilot
transmission
scheme shown in FIG. 3B or the asynchronous pilot transmission scheme shown in
FIG.
3C, the terminal may continually search for strong base stations by performing
delayed
correlation as a background task while the terminal is communicating with one
or more
base stations in an active set. The delayed correlation provides coarse timing
for the
strong base stations found by the search. For the synchronous pilot
transmission
scheme shown in FIG. 3A, the timing of the base stations in the active set may
be used
as the coarse timing of other strong base stations. In any case, the terminal
may perform
direct correlation for TDM pilot 2 for all new base stations with sufficiently
high
received signal strength. Since the terminal already has accurate system
timing from the
base station(s) in the active set, the terminal does not need to use the
coarse time
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estimate from the delayed correlation and may perform direct correlation over
an
uncertainty window centered at the timing of the base station(s) in the active
set. The
terminal may initiate a handoff to another base station having stronger
received signal
strength than that of the base station(s) in the active set.
[0084] For clarity, a specific pilot transmission scheme with two TDM
pilots has
been described above. The use of two TDM pilots may reduce computation at the
terminal since signal acquisition may be performed in two parts ¨ the signal
detection
and time synchronization. The delayed correlation for signal detection may be
efficiently performed with just one multiply for each sample period, as
described below.
Each direct correlation requires multiple (Nid or N2) multiplies. The number
of direct
correlations to compute is dependent on the number of PN sequences to be
evaluated
and may be large (e.g., K, = M, direct correlations for TDM pilot 1, and K2 =
M2 direct
correlations for TDM pilot 2). The pre-processing with TDM pilot 1 can greatly
reduce
the amount of processing required for TDM pilot 2.
[0085] M1 PN1 sequences may be used for TDM pilot 1, and M2 PN2 sequences
may be used for TDM pilot 2 for each PN1 sequence, which gives a total of M, =
M2
PN2 sequences. The choice of M1 and M2 affects the complexity of acquisition
and the
false alarm probability, but has little or no effect on the detection
probabilities for the
delayed correlation and direct correlation (for the same threshold values). As
an
example, if K, = 320 direct correlations are performed for each PN1 sequence
(e.g., for
a lag of 80 chips) and K2 = 16 direct correlations are performed for each PN2
sequence
(e.g., for handoff acquisition), then the total number of direct correlations
is
K, = M, + K2 * M2 = 320 = M, +16 = M2. If M, = M2 = 256 PN2 sequences are
needed for
the system, then computation is minimized if M, =4 and M2 = 64, and the number
of
direct correlations is 2304. In general, any values may be chosen for M1 and
M2
depending on various factors such as, e.g., the total number of PN2 sequences
required
by the system, the uncertainty window size (or K1), the number of detected TDM
pilot 1
instances to evaluate (K2), and so on. Complexity may also be reduced by
searching for
pilots with PN sequences used by base station(s) in the candidate set.
[0086] The TDM pilots may also carry data. For example, TDM pilot 2 may be
used to send one or more bits of information, which may be embedded in the PN2
sequence used by each base station. Instead of having M, = M2 PN2 sequences
for
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TDM pilot 2, one bit of information may be conveyed by using 2 = M, = M2 PN2
sequences for TDM pilot 2. Each base station may then be assigned a pair of
PN2
sequences and may use one PN2 sequence in the pair to convey an information
bit value
- of '0' and use the other PN2 sequence in the pair to convey an
information bit value of
'1'. The number of hypothesis to evaluate for acquisition doubles because
there is twice
the number of possible PN2 sequences. After acquisition, the PN2 sequence is
known
and the associated information bit value can be ascertained. More information
bits may
be conveyed by using a larger set of PN2 sequences for each base station. If
the data
modulation consists of multiplying the PN2 sequence by a phase factor, then no
additional correlations are required. This is because only at the magnitude of
the
correlation is examined and the phase is ignored.
[0087] Signal acquisition may also be performed with a single TDM pilot.
For
example, each base station may transmit a TDM pilot using a PN sequence that
uniquely identifies that base station. The terminal receives the TDM pilots
from all
base stations and performs delayed correlation on the received samples for
signal
detection. If a signal is detected, then the terminal may perform direct
correlation on
the received samples for the TDM pilot with all of the PN sequences and at
different
time offsets (or K, = M, = M2 direct correlations, which may be much larger
than
K, = M, + K2 = M2). From the direct correlation results, the terminal can
identify each
base station transmitting the TDM pilot and determine its timing.
Alternatively, the
terminal may perform direct correlation on the received samples for the TDM
pilot with
a limited set of PN sequences (e.g., for base stations in the candidate set)
to reduce
complexity.
[0088] In addition to the TDM pilot(s), each base station in an OFDM-
based system
may transmit a frequency division multiplexed (FDM) pilot on one or more pilot
subbands, which are subbands designated for the FDM pilot. Each base station
may
transmit the FDM pilot in data field 230 in FIG. 2A and may apply a unique PN
sequence on the pilot symbols sent on the pilot subband(s). The first PN chip
in this PN
sequence may be used for the FDM pilot in symbol period 1, the second PN chip
may
be used for the FDM pilot in symbol period 2, and so on. The PN sequence used
for the
FDM pilot may be the same as, or different from, the PN2 sequence used for TDM
pilot
2. The FDM pilot may be used to improve acquisition performance, e.g., to
reduce false
alarm rate. The FDM pilot may also be used to uniquely identify the base
stations in the
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system. For example, a smaller number of PN2 sequences may be used for TDM
pilot
2, and the FDM pilot may be used to resolve any ambiguity among base stations.
[0089] The direct correlations for TDM pilots 1 and 2 compute the received
signal
strength at specific time offsets. The base stations are thus identified based
on their
strongest signal paths, where each signal path is associated with a particular
time offset.
A receiver in an OFDM-based system can capture the energy for all signal paths
within
the cyclic prefix. Thus, base stations may be selected based on a total energy
metric
instead of a strongest path metric.
[0090] For a synchronous system, the base stations may transmit their TDM
pilots 1
and 2 at the same time, as shown in FIG. 3A. Alternatively, the base stations
may
transmit their TDM pilots staggered in time, as shown in FIG. 3B. For
staggered TDM
pilots, the terminal may obtain delayed correlation peaks at different time
offsets and
may compare these peaks in order to select the strongest base station.
[0091] Some or all of the base stations in the system may be asynchronous.
In this
case, the TDM pilots from different base stations may not arrive
coincidentally with
each other. The terminal may still be able to perform the signal acquisition
described
above to search for and acquire pilots from the base station. However, if the
base
stations are asynchronous, then the TDM pilot 1 from each base station may
observe
interference from other base stations, and detection performance for the
delayed
correlation degrades because of the interference. The duration of the TDM
pilot 1 may
be extended to account for the interference and achieve the desired detection
performance (e.g., the desired detection probability for TDM pilot 1).
4. System
[0092] FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of a base station 110x and a terminal
120x,
which are one base station and one terminal in system 100. At base station
110x, a TX
data processor 510 receives different types of data (e.g., traffic/packet data
and
overhead/control data) and processes (e.g., encodes, interleaves, and symbol
maps) the
received data to generate data symbols. As used herein, a "data symbol" is a
modulation symbol for data, a "pilot symbol" is a modulation symbol for pilot
(which is
data that is known a priori by both the base station and terminals), and a
modulation
symbol is a complex value for a point in a signal constellation for a
modulation scheme
(e.g., M-PSK, M-QAM, and so on).
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[0093] An OFDM modulator 520 multiplexes the data symbols onto the proper
subbands and performs OFDM modulation on the multiplexed symbols to generate
OFDM symbols. A TX pilot processor 530 generates TDM pilots 1 and 2 in the
time
domain (as shown in FIG. 5) or the frequency domain. A multiplexer (Mux) 532
receives and multiplexes TDM pilots 1 and 2 from TX pilot processor 530 with
the
OFDM symbols from OFDM modulator 520 and provides a stream of samples to a
transmitter unit (TMTR) 534. Transmitter unit 534 converts the sample stream
into
analog signals and further conditions (e.g., amplifies, filters, and frequency
upconverts)
the analog signals to generate a modulated signal. Base station 110x then
transmits the
modulated signal from an antenna 536 to terminals in the system.
[0094] At terminal 120x, the transmitted signals from base station 110x as
well as
other base stations are received by an antenna 552 and provided to a receiver
unit
(RCVR) 554. Receiver unit 554 conditions (e.g., filters, amplifies, frequency
downconverts, and digitizes) the received signal to generate a stream of
received
samples. A synchronization (sync) unit 580 obtains the received samples from
receiver
unit 554 and performs acquisition to detect for signals from the base stations
and
determine the timing of each detected base station. Unit 580 provides timing
information to an OFDM demodulator 560 and/or a controller 590.
[0095] OFDM demodulator 560 performs OFDM demodulation on the received
samples based on the timing information from unit 580 and obtains received
data and
pilot symbols. OFDM demodulator 560 also performs detection (or matched
filtering)
on the received data symbols with a channel estimate (e.g., a frequency
response
estimate) and obtains detected data symbols, which are estimates of the data
symbols
sent by base station 110x. OFDM demodulator 560 provides the detected data
symbols
to a receive (RX) data processor 570. RX data processor 570 processes (e.g.,
symbol
demaps, deinterleaves, and decodes) the detected data symbols and provides
decoded
data. RX data processor 570 and/or controller 590 may use the timing
information to
recover different types of data sent by base station 110x. In general, the
processing by
OFDM demodulator 560 and RX data processor 570 is complementary to the
processing
by OFDM modulator 520 and TX data processor 510, respectively, at base station
110x.
[0096] Controllers 540 and 590 direct operation at base station 110x and
terminal
120x, respectively. Memory units 542 and 592 provide storage for program codes
and
data used by controllers 540 and 590, respectively.
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[0097] FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of an embodiment of TX pilot processor
530
at base station 110x. For this embodiment, TX pilot processor 530 generates
TDM
pilots 1 and 2 in the time domain. Within TX pilot processor 530, a PN1
generator 612
generates the PN1 sequence assigned to base station 110x, and a PN2 generator
614
generates the PN2 sequence assigned to base station 110x. Each PN generator
may be
implemented with, for example, a linear feedback shift register (LFSR) that
implements
a generator polynomial for the PN sequence. PN generators 612 and 614 may be
initialized with the proper values corresponding to the PN1 and PN2 sequences
assigned
to base station 110x. A multiplexer 616 receives the outputs from PN
generators 612
and 614 and provides the output from each PN generator at the appropriate
time, as
determined by a TDM_Ctrl signal.
[0098] The TDM pilots may also be generated in the frequency domain, as
described above. In this case, the PN1 and PN2 sequences from PN generators
612 and
614, respectively, may be provided to OFDM modulator 520 and used to multiply
the
frequency-domain pilot symbols or the time-domain samples for the TDM pilots.
[0099] FIG. 7- shows a block diagram of an embodiment of sync unit 580 at
terminal 120x. Sync unit 580 includes a TDM pilot 1 processor 710 and a TDM
pilot 2
processor 740. Within TDM pilot 1 processor 710, a delayed correlator 720
performs
delayed correlation on the received samples and provides a delayed correlation
result
C(n) for each sample period. A pilot/peak detector 722 detects for the
presence of
TDM pilot 1 in the received signal based on the delayed correlation results
and, if a
signal is detected, determines the peak of the delayed correlation. A
frequency error
detector 724 estimates the frequency error in the received samples based on
the phase of
the delayed correlation result at the detected peak, as shown in equation (8),
and
provides the frequency error estimate. A frequency error correction unit 726
performs
frequency error correction on the received samples and provides frequency-
corrected
samples. A direct correlator 730 performs direct correlation on the frequency-
corrected
samples (as shown in FIG. 7) or the received samples (not shown) for different
time
offsets in the uncertainty window, which is centered at the detected peak
location, and
provides direct correlation results for TDM pilot 1. A peak detector 732
detects for the
K2 strongest instances of TDM pilot 1 within the uncertainty window.
[00100] Within TDM pilot 2 processor 740, a direct correlator 750 performs
direct
correlation on the received or frequency corrected samples for different pilot-
2
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hypotheses determined by the K2 strongest detected TDM pilot 1 instances from
peak
detector 732 and provides direct correlation results for these pilot-2
hypotheses. A pilot
detector 752 detects for presence of TDM pilot 2 by performing the normalized
comparison shown in equation (13). Pilot detector 752 provides the identity as
well as
the timing of each detected base station as the detector output.
[00101] FIG. 8A shows a block diagram of an embodiment of delayed correlator
720
for TDM pilot 1. Within delayed correlator 720, a shift register 812 (of
length Li)
receives and stores the received sample r(n) for each sample period n and
provides a
delayed received sample r(n ¨L,) , which has been delayed by L1 sample
periods. A
sample buffer may also be used in place of shift register 812. A unit 816 also
obtains
the received sample r(n) and provides a complex-conjugated received sample r*
(n) .
For each sample period n, a multiplier 814 multiplies the delayed received
sample
r(n ¨ L1) from shift register 812 with the complex-conjugated received sample
r* (n)
from unit 816 and provides a correlation result c(n)= r(n) = r(n ¨ L1) to a
shift register
822 (of length Ni) and a summer 824. For each sample period n, shift register
822
receives and stores the correlation result c(n) from multiplier 814 and
provides a
correlation result c(n ¨N1) that has been delayed by N1 sample periods. For
each
sample period n, summer 824 receives and sums the output C(n ¨1) of a register
826
with the result c(n) from multiplier 814, further subtracts the delayed result
c(n ¨N1)
from shift register 822, and provides its output C(n) to register 826. Summer
824 and
register 826 form an accumulator that performs the summation operation in
equation
(2). Shift register 822 and summer 824 are also configured to perform a
running or
sliding summation of the N1 most recent correlation results c(n) through c(n ¨
N1 +1) .
This is achieved by summing the most recent correlation result c(n) from
multiplier
814 and subtracting out the correlation result c(n ¨N1) from N1 sample periods
earlier,
which is provided by shift register 822.
[00102] FIG. 8B shows a block diagram of an embodiment of direct correlator
730
for TDM pilot 1. Within direct correlator 730, a buffer 842 stores the
received samples.
When the peak of the delayed correlation for TDM pilot 1 has been detected, a
window
generator 832 determines the uncertainty window and provides controls to
evaluate each
of the pilot-1 hypotheses. Generator 832 provides a time offset and a PN1
sequence for
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each pilot-1 hypothesis. Buffer 842 provides the proper sequence of
(conjugated)
samples for each pilot-1 hypothesis based on the indicated time offset. A PN
generator
834 generates the proper PN1 sequence at the indicated time offset. A
multiplier 844
multiplies the samples from buffer 842 with the PN1 sequence from PN generator
834.
For each pilot-1 hypothesis, an accumulator 846 accumulates the Nid results
from
multiplier 844 and provides the direct correlation result for that hypothesis.
[00103] Direct correlator 750 for TDM pilot 2 may be implemented in similar
manner as direct correlator 730 for TDM pilot 1, albeit with the following
differences.
Generator 832 generates the controls to evaluate the K2 detected TDM pilot 1
instances
from peak detector 732 instead of the K1 time offsets within the uncertainty
window.
PN generator 834 generates the proper PN2 sequence instead of the PN1
sequence.
Accumulator 846 performs accumulation over N2 samples instead of Nid samples.
[00104] The signal acquisition techniques described herein may be implemented
by
various means. For example, these techniques may be implemented in hardware,
software, or a combination thereof For a hardware implementation, the
processing
units used to generate and transmit the TDM pilot(s) may be implemented within
one or
more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal
processors (DSPs),
digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs),
field
programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, micro-controllers,
microprocessors, other electronic units designed to perform the functions
described
herein, or a combination thereof The processing units used to perform
acquisition may
also be implemented within one or more ASICs, DSPs, and so on.
[00105] For a software implementation, the signal acquisition techniques may
be
implemented with modules (e.g., procedures, functions, and so on) that perform
the
functions described herein. The software codes may be stored in a memory unit
(e.g.,
memory unit 542 or 592 in FIG. 5) and executed by a processor (e.g.,
controller 540 or
590). The memory unit may be implemented within the processor or external to
the
processor, in which case it can be communicatively coupled to the processor
via various
means as is known in the art.
[00106] As used herein, OFDM may also include an orthogonal frequency division
multiple access (OFDMA) architecture where multiple users share the OFDM
channels.
[00107] Headings are included herein for reference and to aid in locating
certain
sections. These headings are not intended to limit the scope of the concepts
described
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therein under, and these concepts may have applicability in other sections
throughout
the entire specification.
[00108] The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to
enable
any person skilled in the art to make or use the present invention. Various
modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled
in the art,
and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments
without
departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present
invention is not
intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded
the widest
scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.
